Raw sewage. Garissa residents have been accused of emptying debris in sewer lines. [Photo/Charles Ronald]
The Garissa Water and Sewerage Company (GAWASCO) has blamed the residents for broken sewer lines in the town.
GAWASCO MD Yusuf Mohamed said residents in the county are partly to blame following the collapse of the sewerage system.
Mohamed said the residents are emptying debris and other wastes that are not meant for sewerage system leading to blocked sewer lines.
Mohamed warned that the sewer network for Garissa which is three decades old was built to cater for just about 11,000 people but the population has grown to about 500,000.
He said the residents end up choking the already overloaded sewerage system as the broken sewers pose a great health hazard.
He, however, said they have put measures in place to unclog the blocked sewer lines adding that they are talking to sister companies in Nairobi and Nakuru seeking their modern flashing unit vehicles to help in clearing the lines.
“Am urging the residents to stop emptying debris into the sewer lines. Some of the residents have even sunk and connected these lines from their pits directly to the system.”
“Am asking the affected residents to be patient as the company tries to unclog the blocked sewer lines. Our technical crew from the sewer department are on the ground to fix the problem,” said the MD.